Thanks to NetGalley & Avon Books for the eARC and my library for the Libby App audiobook borrow.

Fancy Meeting You Here
by Julie Tieu

Narrated by Natalie Naudus
Story Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0-5)
Narration: 🎧🎧🎧🎧 (0-5)
Overall: 3.5/5
Steam: 2.5/5 Open door but barely. Limited scenes and limited details.

What I’m Starry-Eyed Over:
🤩 Best friend’s brother and sneaking around.
🤩 Sweet and fun friends.
🤩 Crazy political campaign drama.
🤩 Read this if you love wedding celebrations, wedding receptions, wedding planning, wedding venues, wedding flowers, wedding traditions (a smidge of Chinese American wedding traditions).
🤩 I’m a sucker for a stormed in situation.
🤩 I did laugh out loud at the grape decorations mistake.

What I’m Wishing/Dizzy About:
💫 I liked it. But it was low in the feels, nothing really stood out.
💫 Women’s Fiction mixed with romcoms—lots of focus on the other friends and their weddings and celebrations.
💫 I just didn’t love Ben, and I prefer to adore my MCs.

I loved this one!!! I thought it was so cute and the banter was on point. I can't wait to read other books by Julie Tieu.

This book is an absolute gem! From the first page to the last, I was completely engrossed in the story. The characters were richly developed, the plot was captivating, and the writing style was flawless. I found myself unable to put it down, eagerly flipping pages to see what would happen next. It's rare to come across a book that leaves such a lasting impression, but this one definitely did. A definite must-read for any book lover!

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

I have loved Julie Tieu's previous books so when I saw this would be great for fans of the romcom classic 27 Dresses, I knew I would love this one! I had a great time reading this and I think Julie's books just keep getting better and better!

3.5 stars!
i thought this book was overall pretty cute. it was interesting to see a wedding florist/planner in action. i think that ben and elise were cute but nothing super memorable. this book was kind of frustrating at points. for instance, i felt like elise was kind of being "unknowingly" used by her friends and then, also, when things got bad, ben and his family just kind of forgot about how everything would affect her.

Elise and Ben are at crossroads in their lives. They are at the point that most of their friends have found success and partners and they are still exploring their place. This is a poignant and sweet journey of Ben and Elise finding happiness and success.

Story of four friends where three of them are getting married in a short time span and the fourth one is the florist for their weddings. I just found most of this book to move so slowly. It wasn't until about the last 1/4 of the book that it moved. I stuck with it because the main characters and most of the other characters were Asian Americans.I haven't read many romances books that include this culture and it interested me. Unfortunately, the plot was just too slow for me. Thanks for the advanced copy NetGalley. #NetGalley #FancyMeetingYouHere

I found myself more invested in Elise than the romance, her friends are kind of awful, but this was an easy read.

A cute fun romantic comedy. Elise and Ben are lovely leads and so many supporting characters round out this novel with such a fun premise. A loving friend group who are so much fun to read about, I wish there was more!

The characters are incredibly well-developed and relatable. Elise is such a strong and independent protagonist that you can't help but cheer for her. And Ben, oh my goodness, he's a complex and intriguing character who slowly reveals his vulnerable side. Their story kept me engaged from beginning to end, and I couldn't put the book down.

I loved this one! I haven’t read a Julie Tieu novel I didn’t like, and Fancy Meeting You Here was no exception! Lovable characters you can’t help but root for, a plot that keeps you turning pages, and a romance that sizzles with chemistry!

Fancy Meeting You Here
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Author: Julie Tieu

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Avon Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Every single one of Elise Ngo's close girlfriends--Rebecca, Jesse, and Beth--is getting married within the same few months, and every single one of them has asked her to be both bridesmaid and florist. Though it's a lot for her to juggle, the work and exposure is a boon to her struggling flower shop. The stakes are high at Rebecca's high-profile wedding, where the guests are mostly political connections of Rebecca's parents. Desperate for the event to go off without a hitch, Elise enlists the help of an outside caterer who turns out to be Ben Yu, Rebecca's elusive younger brother. Though Ben is prickly and aloof, he offers Elise much needed business designing flowers for his mom's campaign fundraisers and Elise begins to see there's more to Ben than his gruff and handsome exterior. But their romance takes off as the political campaign ramps up, complicating their relationship with unforeseen consequences. Now always-the-bridesmaid Elise must fight for what she wants to finally get her own happily ever after.

My Thoughts: This was a lighthearted sweet read. Elise’s friends are getting married, she is each of their’s bridesmaid and florist. Her flower shop is struggling and she needs something big to keep it afloat. Her friend Rebecca is the wedding she is most concerned about, as Rebecca’s mother is in politics and the wedding will be high profile. Enter Ben, Rebecca’s brother, and a caterer/chef. Ben enlists Rebecca’s help providing the flower arrangements for a few political events. As they spend time together preparing for the wedding, their relationship grows. However, will the relationship get sidetracked when the political campaign gears into action? Elise will have to dig deep to fight for what she wants, as she is the one in charge of her own HEA. This follows the tropes of friend’s brother, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and grumpy v sunshine.

The story is narrated in first person POV by Elise. There are a lot of characters in this story, but once you get it down, it flows nicely. Elise is kind, caring, loyal to a fault, and wants to take care of people. Ben is grumpy, broody, handsome, and charming. Then there is the friend group, to have a friend group like this in life is endearing, and even rare. Each of the supporting characters elevated the story by bringing something unique. This had both political campaign and wedding elements, which I loved. The characters were developed (I would like to have seen more development) throughout the novel, they had some depth, witty banter, chemistry, and were intriguing. The author’s writing style was creative, inspiring, funny, and kept me invested from cover to cover.

This was similar to 27 Dresses or always the bridesmaid and never the bride scenario. I was provided with the digital arc but listened to the audiobook as I am a little behind in my reviews. I loved Tieu’s other works. While this one needed a little more character development and cleaning up the plot holes, I still enjoyed this book very much and can’t wait for the next novel by Tieu. The audiobook really helped with sorting out the numerous characters and I would definitely recommend picking up the audiobook.

I did like the book overall, it was a very low-stakes romance with a ton of heart. The best friends can stand a severe talking to but, at the end of the day, the romance wasn't as believable as I wanted it to be

This book follows a florist designer who tries to save her business but begins to fall in love. The author did a great job with introducing the story as I was intrigued with the plot. However, over time, I began to like it less and less. The writing went downhill as the plot began to disappear, the conflicts became weak and the dialogue became cringy. There’s also way too much political stuff compared to romance which was a bummer. This book is also told from Elise’s pov.

Elise was a mix of great and bad FMC. I loved how strong of a character she was and never gave up on her goals but she was also boring and didn’t have any development. Now I wish we had Ben’s pov because I think that would have been better so we understood his character more. It felt like he was barely in the book even though he was the love interest and was just there when the author needed him. The other side characters, mainly the best friends, were kind of horrible friends. They were all getting married in a span of months and hiring their best friend knowing she might be struggling and not paying enough. The romance felt nonexistent as there was no chemistry and the guy was barely there.

The ending was honestly sad to the fact people realized they had been treating Elise with no care but I also stopped caring about this book. I had high hopes for it but this book was not it for me. I wish there was more to this book because there was potential with the story concept which is similar to It Ends with Us if I think about it but without the abusive boyfriend.

*this book was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

Elise is spread thin. Between her three best friends getting married in the same summer and her wedding florist company struggling to make ends meet, Elise is trying to juggle keeping her friends happy and her business afloat. She has no time for love or dating or much of anything for herself. Enter Ben: her best friends brother, and hot to boot. When he’s the only person she can trust, will she find room in her busy schedule for love or will the stress tear their happiness apart before it can bloom?

Fancy Meeting You Here is a fun twist on the "always the bridesmaid, never the bride" trope because not only is our main character the bridesmaid for all of her friend's upcoming weddings - she is also the florist.

Elise is feeling stretched thin between keeping her shop afloat and her friend's happy, the burnout is getting close. She enlists the help of Rebecca (her friend)'s younger brother, Ben. Ben is stoic and snappy but is willing to give great business advice.

However, the longer they spend together the closer they get. The chaos of wedding season and politics can get in the way though.

I think this book is a great example of what it is to burn yourself to keep others warm, I have a bad habit of doing this myself and its easier from the outside looking in to say she needs to take a break. It is a good reminder to have healthy boundaries with everyone. I also really enjoyed the romance and that sometimes a grand gesture can come in the most unlikely of ways.

I think this contemporary romance was a good balance of finding oneself, especially when it comes to careers, and family expectations. This was a fast read and wish it had been a little longer.

I really enjoy reading Tieu's books and look forward to more future work.

I loved this book! I devoured it in only a few sittings and wish there was more to read. The story line was paced very well and the characters were easy to love!